Stafne challenges whether DelBene is a good representative when she won’t support Bernie The democratic party has put its Congressional representatives in an untenable, but familiar position by anointing them “super-delegates” but then requiring them to support Hillary regardless of the fact that Bernie is clearly the better candidate. Obviously, the democratic party has long since forgotten that under the United States Comstitution the role of a “representative” is to represent the people, not the democratic party. The dictionary defines “representative” to mean: ” having people who are chosen in elections to act or speak for or in support of the people who voted for them.” My opponent for Congress in District 1, incumbent Suzane DelBene said on her 2014 campaign web page that she wants to lead people. Specifically she writes: We need a leader who understands the power of innovation and who has the experience and determination to get things done in Washington, D.C. We need a leader who values creative and lasting solutions over empty partisanship. We need someone committed to the Democratic principles of honesty, integrity, equality of opportunity, and fair play. We need someone who will never lose sight of our shared commitment to the common good, but who also knows how to reach out across political divides to bring together diverse and competing interests to create progress. Given her steadfast refusal to support Bernie notwithstanding that he is the presidential candidate her constituents prefer one must wonder if she is content with the job … Continue Reading

WHY I SUPPORT THE NEW STATE OF JEFFERSON. This map shows those counties in Northern California which have expressed a desire to create a new State. Mainstream media has been trying to foist the notion that those persons who want to create a new State out of parts of California and Oregon are gun toting rednecks who don’t have an intelligent bone in their body. Don’t be fooled. This nose in the air disdain for us normal people is the same type of crap the media originally used to write off Bernie and the Donald before we showed the media it doesn’t matter to us. Republicans and democrats scoff at the notion that California should be divided into two because they don’t want any disruption of their monopoly on power. But that monopoly must end. And we need new governmental entities which will support those constitutional principles the two party system has sacrificed over and over again for their own good and greed. I support the formation of the State of Jefferson because our federal government is not working for the people, i.e. us, in the ways our founders intended. Many have forgotten that our founders created a federal system of government so that we, the people, would be better protected from that type of abuse of power which is now rampant in the empire. The idea was that multiple republican governments inside one nation would protect the people. The goal was that each government would endeavor to protect their … Continue Reading

Media Coverage of May Day Protests illustrates Bias I don’t watch much television. But last night while attempting to watch the news I got stuck watching Channel 7’s coverage of Seattle’s May Day protests. It was obvious that their comments were scripted by those who support the empire as it is. They kept calling the protesters “anarchists”. That’s just flat out misleading. An “anarchist” is a noun defined as: 1. a person who advocates or believes in anarchy or anarchism. 2. a person who seeks to overturn by violence all constituted forms and institutions of society and government, with no purpose of establishing any other system of order in the place of that destroyed. 3. a person who promotes disorder or excites revolt against any established rule, law, or custom. To protest a corrupt government that evicts millions of vulnerable people to die in the streets, incarcerates innocent people who have not committed a crime solely for purposes of keeping private prisons full pursuant to the terms of government contracts, and perpetuation of a pharmaceutical system developed to keep people sick does not mean you are an anarchist. It more likely means these people want a better government; not that they are against all government. Most of us so-called “anarchists” want governments that are more local in nature and provide a meaningful link between those who are elected to represent us. We do not want the Republican and Democratic parties filtering our access to our elected representatives. Ironically, the media has become an … Continue Reading

Reaching Planetary Consensus. A facebook friend, who appears to share many of the views I do, posted the following quote and picture: “Religion is regarded by the common people as true,by the wise as false,and by the rulers as useful”~Seneca There are many “religions.” Many sects of religions. I do not believe wisdom teaches us that they are false. They are one, of many modalities, by which communities (local, national, and planetary) reach consensus. In this regard, religions are not much different than nations, political parties, clubs, generations, and other peer groups. It is true that rulers find promoting differences between us as being in their own best interests because this keeps us, the people, divided… It stops us from focusing on them and their obscene greed as being the root cause of society’s problems. I am not a religious scholar. But I do know that religions are not the problem… They did not bring on the bankcrime or leaderscum which has left so many of us hopeless and without resources. We need to unite those local gardens of creative and spiritual consensus, which already exist, so that their members can do the the work in their community necessary to remove those who always put their own good ahead of what is most beneficial for the whole. If you doubt the moral similarities among religions (and there is no reason why you should not) then read a little about them. There is not one that exalts the money lenders our governments prostitute us … Continue Reading

Why I became a Libertarian in 2016. I believe: “[a]ll political power is inherent in the people, and governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed, and are established to protect and maintain individual rights.” Individual rights are those which are bestowed on each of us by our creator, not privileges the government can franchise to corporations to sell to us for their own benefit. We, as people, have traveled the path of civilization to a point where freedom and economic wealth have become an intersection where most us must stop because we do not have the economic resources to exercise our most basic liberties. As a Libertarian I object to the government becoming an ally of the rich in enslaving people to debt which makes it impossible to exercise their freedoms. When our country was founded capitalism provided an adequate mechanism for most people to accumulate sufficient economic resources to enable them to exercise their personal liberties. Today, the crony capitalism promoted by the republican and democratic parties has created such disparity of wealth that only a few have access to those fundamental freedoms our forefathers took for granted. I cannot continue to support the two party tyranny which has created the greatest system of injustice the world has ever seen. No longer do we engage in debate over entitlement programs; we simply evict our vulnerable and let them die unknown on our streets. Of course, there are several third parties out there I could have … Continue Reading

Why Is Non-judicial Foreclosure “Unconstitutional”? I was asked to write an article about why Washington’s Deed of Trusts Act, which allows lenders to take homes without having to go through some Court process was unconstitutional. The person who asked me to do this wanted me to keep the article to 500 words and “not sound like a lawyer.” Unfortunately, I concluded that I could not sound like anything but a lawyer, because that is what I am. So I asked my paralegal, Michael Fasset (an Iraq veteran who has a knack for law and helps me with regard to my practice) to write an article for non-lawyers on why nonjudicial foreclosure is unconstitutional. Here is what he wrote. I will follow up in a few weeks with another blog which will sound like it was written by me about why the DTA is unconstitutional and should be repealed. Introduction I have been asked by Scott Stafne to explain why non-judicial foreclosure is constitutionally unsound without resorting to legalese; I have, however, included some footnotes which will be more technically challenging for those without a legal background. I’ll start with a brief background on how non-judicial foreclosure came to Washington and how it has fared in the courts. I’ll then attempt to explain what it means for a law to be constitutional (because such things are decided by attorneys it’s not as clear cut as you might think). Finally I’ll explain why Washington’s Deeds of Trust Act’s, which I will … Continue Reading

We should initiate this empire’s collapse politically now in 2016. I am on an Amtrak train riding back to Arlington, Washington from Portland, Oregon. I was in Portland from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm sharp deposing Chris Caldwell, a lawyer for 21st Mortgage servicing company. My client, Duncan Robertson, was with me. He’s become well trained in the law while fighting corrupt banks and servicers aspiring to steal his real estate in Washington State. After the deposition recessed because of the deponent’s schedule (I wanted to continue asking questions) Duncan dropped me off at Amtrak’s Union Station where I met with Kay, a concerned citizen in Oregon. We met there to discuss strategies with regard to restoring our representative republic by increasing the number of legislators responsible to the people. Kay and I discussed how the value of our votes and the votes of all Americans had been systematically devalued by the 1929 Apportionment Act freezing the House of Representative at only 435 members, no matter how much the nation’s population grew thereafter. Many, including myself, believe this decision by the republican and democratic parties destroyed the electoral accountability our founders intended members of the House would have to the constituents within their districts. By brazenly acting to facilitate their own best interests, the political powers have frustrated our founding fathers’ intentions that Congress would initiate the passage of laws and have final oversight of all government officials in each of the three branches through its the exercise of its impeachment power. As Federalist Paper #49 observed the members … Continue Reading

Unfortunately, King County officials are a primary cause of Seattle’s homelessness problems and deaths. At least that was my conclusion after hearing the remarks (and having read the Audit) of nationally renowned auditor Marie McDonnell at the Seattle Mortgage Economic Reality (MERS) Summit at the Bethany Church last Sunday. King County’s land records have become corrupted as a result of the King County Sheriff and Prosecutor Office refusing to enforce Washington’s criminal laws against banks and hedge fund entities like Nationstar and Berkshire Hathaway. We, the people, need to do something about these public officials refusing to enforce the law against the wealthy 1%.We need to make Sheriffs and Prosecutors aware that we are watching them betray the public interest. Further, that we intend to hold them accountable for their betrayal of the people at the polls in 2016. So why does King County have land records and a recorder of deeds? Wikipedia explains the answer very simply: The legal certainty provided by a title deed issued under the registration of the recorder of deeds is of great significance to all parties who hold, or wish to acquire rights in real property. Certainty of title is the basis for the investment of massive amounts of money in real estate development for residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural use each year. This is why the meticulous recording of registration information by the recorder of deeds is so important. Each document recorded against title to real estate can be examined and the portion of the bundle of rights that it includes … Continue Reading

I am grateful to be a part of a spiritual movement designed to take our country back from the stomach of the empire which has swallowed it. It is not always easy practicing law while fighting off the empire. You have to take your lumps. But difficulties are often the source of new beginnings. Certainly, this is not how I envisioned spending my sixties when I was in my twenties. The Vietnam War began in November, 1955 and ended twenty years later in 1975. It was the last real war in the sense that American youth were conscripted from the general population and made to fight in a war that many of us believed should not have been fought. (Now the empire employs mercenaries to fight its endless wars having figured out that the people would not tolerate their children coming home in coffins unless they were paid to put their young lives in danger.) I was 20 in 1970 studying in London when I wrote “The Nakedness of Love”. I found the poem recently when I rummaged through boxes of my past. Although the poem is somewhat dated with regard to sexuality issues that are now being resolved, the third scene dealing with our government and politics still rings true. Scene 3: Act 1: Ashes are only ashes; Day is only day. Darkness always comes. It does no good to pray. The curtains will only open, they will never close. Man will become naked and refute all he knows. On … Continue Reading

Full Spectrum Advocacy in 2016. The United States Constitution was devised to protect us, the people, from abuses of power by the federal government. Washington’s Constitution was written not only to protect individuals from our State government, but also from those corporations and elites which prey on the people to create and maintain their wealth. A primary means by which the authors of both the United States’ and Washington State’s Constitutions chose to protect us was by separating and arranging governmental branches and offices in such a way so that each might be a check on the other. Today, the wealthy have figured out a way around the check and balances enacted by our founders to ensure the inalienable rights of all individuals. Today, the wealthy simply purchase the government, lock, stock, and barrel. What looks like three cars is really only transportation for one; the person who owns all three cars. Similarly, wealthy corporations and people use their money to purchase the strings of government to manipulate the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of federal and state governments for their own benefit. They have become the puppeteers of each of the branches so that they can stage a tragi-comedy of government they expect us to take seriously because they have the money to get away with it. Our framers predicted tyranny would result if the checks and balances they created to protect us became corrupted. For example, Alexander Hamilton explained in Federalist Paper #78 that judges needed to be … Continue Reading

Democrats role’ in the foreclosure crisis suggests neither major political party cares about the people. Did Democrat candidates keep their promises to act on behalf of the people and not the 1%? You be the judge. This is a campaign ad for Bob Ferguson, who is running for re-election as the Attorney General of Washington State. Ferguson is the guy with glasses standing in the middle of the group of four people, who look like homeowners. The promise just below this photograph states: “Bob will Protect Homeowners and Hold Banks Accountable”. Ferguson, like many Democrats empire wide, made the same claim last election cycle. He promised he would use his position as attorney general to protect homeowners. Did Democrat candidates keep their promises to act on behalf of the people? No. While Republican President George Bush bailed out the banks, it was Democratic President Barack Obama who followed up by allowing the banks to brazenly feast on people’s homes. It is the Democratic Party (the party which always claims to represent the interests of the people) which has been in charge of the greatest redistribution of wealth from the middle class to the rich in the history of the world. So after promising to help them protect their homes from banks, what did AG Ferguson do to fulfill that promise? Astonishingly, he brought foxes in to the hen house. AG Ferguson hired bank attorneys and paralegals to “protect consumers“. Was this an act of bad faith towards homeowners? In my judgment: YES. I frequently … Continue Reading

“Civil government, so far as it is instituted for the security of property, is in reality instituted for the defence of the rich against the poor, or of those who have some property against those who have none at all.” Our founders intended something different than a government which protects only the wealthy. America’s Constitution contemplates that “we the people” are sovereign. Further, that those governmental officials who act pursuant to the power of the people will act to protect the natural rights of all people. Last Sunday I was one of two attorneys who appeared as guest on a segment of Gary Dubin’s the Foreclosure Hour on Iheartradio. The common link which united me with longtime lawyer William Butler was that we were both being threatened by agents of the empire for representing homeowners against banks and servicers in courts. Here is a link to promotional materials about the broadcasts, which were entitled “Our Independent Judiciary Is No Longer Independent: Ten Ways in which our Courts are Denying Homeowners the Ability to Adequately Present the Merits of their Foreclosure Defense Cases.” One way which the empire supports the 1%, which Bill and I were appearing on the show to demonstrate, is by marginalizing those advocates of the people who dare sue banks on behalf of ordinary people. Both Bill and I practiced law for most of our lives without the slightest hint of a problem. It was only when our sense of justice caused us to stray from representing personal injury victims to … Continue Reading

So I was on facebook this morning and I shared this picture. An apparently well intentioned member of the democratic party posted the following comment: “Better STOP hating and start being POSITIVE. Saying that neither the Demo nor the GOP can do anything for you, you are setting yourself to FAIL!!! Starting over from scratch is a lot harder than working from within!!!!” I responded: “David, I appreciate your comments. But I have heard them many times before in the 66 years of my existence. Wisdom instructs that working within the system for change has not worked. Continually voting for the lesser of two evils will always result in more evil.You may not appreciate this until you have observed the growth of evil over the course of a lifetime. I am now convinced we, the people, must with a devout and spiritual intention take back the reins of sovereignty from a system which exercises it only to benefit the 1%. We must weed both the Republican and Democratic parties from the garden of government so that we can nourish leaders who share goals of the people; not the goals of an out of hand empire which already has 6 1/2 times the military might of the rest rest of the world combined and still wants to spend virtually all of the people’s money on building a bigger and better war machine (rather than feeding and educating its people). David, my motivation is not hate (although I do feel anger and … Continue Reading